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If you don't want to spend a fortune on a hotel, I'd stay in a borough. There were a lot of decent hotels near Long Island City in Queens. If you're right by the 7 train, it'll take 15 minutes or so to get into Time Square (which you can connect to a ton of different trains to get somewhere).

My favorite little spot for coffee and pastries is Big Booty Bakery on 23rd and 8th.

OP times square is my least favorite part of NYC. Definitely go see it, but I wouldn't stay there. It's a big city but I think its hard to get lost - all the streets are numbered so as long as you know your destination, follow the numbers! compared to Boston where the set up makes no logical sense, I think NYC is easy peasy!

I second long island city, you get AMAZING views from there, too and the train is so easy. If you want to stay in Manhattan I would recommend staying closer to either Central Park or the empire state building. We got great deals on a double tree with a sweet view of the empire state building a few years ago. I would also look into Air B&B.

This seems to be an unpopular opinion amongst other NYC residents such as myself, but I'm going to tell you to definitely hit up all the tourist spots that New York is famous for. New Yorkers won't go to the Statue of Liberty or the Freedom Tower, but that's because we live here. I literally work in the World Trade Center. I'm not going to come here for a day out. But as a tourist, this is part of what makes New York New York. So I'd definitely suggest doing popular tourist spots like that.

I'd ALSO suggest saving a couple of days or nights without an itinerary. Time Out New York comes out every Wednesday. They have schedules of what's happening around the city for the next week (Wednesday to Wednesday). Some of the stuff is expensive, some is very cheap, but this is how New Yorkers decide what do with their weekends. You can visit their website and they have the same info on the website that they would in the magazine (sometimes even more). That kind of stuff includes street fairs, talks, stand up comedy, parades, random stuff like that.

I also see you're getting married in June, if you're coming here in June, or July, consider looking up some of our amazing parades. (Pride Parade and Mermaid Parade are two that I love going to.)

In terms of shows, you can't go wrong with Lion King of Wicked or other fan favorites, but if you've got money, I'm going to suggest Then She Fell. It's not a show where you're sitting in the audience watching it, it's an interactive show where the audience participates in the show. It ranks as one of the most amazing experiences of my life.

Other stuff: If you're coming in the summer, pack summer clothes and a lot of sunblock. It gets HOT and HUMID, especially in Manhattan where all the glass and steel turns the city into an oven.

Oh and walk. Save an afternoon to walk from somewhere near Central Park (I like around 59th, Columbus Circle) to just walk downtown. You can choose any number of amazing avenues to walk down. Madison is a favorite if you want to see all the chichi shops. Walking all the way downtown (and by this I mean Union Square or Washington Square or if you've got the legs for it, the Brooklyn Bridge), is a great way to see the city. I do this a lot as a resident.

@AD2AP make sure you look into Long Island CITY and not just Long Island. Long Island is like an hour train ride to NYC. Long Island City is a quick subway ride. It's also very up and coming and there are great views of the NYC skyline.

We normally take our kids up to NYC around Christmas time every year. Last time we stayed at the Hilton Midtown....(I got a steal of a deal on cyber Monday) for two nights. Our kids love everything about Central Park and their favorite place to go. You have to go to Times Square, we never felt unsafe. (And we have five kids and started going when our now 13 year old daughter was 7 and never wanted to hold a hand). Brooklyn Bridge is awesome and there is this amazing pizza place right near the base of it.....I think it is called Julianna's?? China town is fun to explore too. You won't find a shortage of places to eat that is for sure. Get the city pass as I believe it includes most of the main attractions. For sure visit the memorial and tour the museum. NYC is so much fun. It is &dollar;&dollar;&dollar;, but so worth it!!!! I will say using the subway there for the first time was confusing and we use the DC metro quite often.

If you have google maps and use the transportation feature (do this before going under ground), it'll tell you what stop to get off at, what exit to walk out of (nw/ne/sw/se) and makes it relatively tourist friendly. Personally I wouldn't recommend staying in Times Square. However I used to work in TS and like many NYCers grew to hate it. It's just super busy with foot traffic, getting a cab is downright impossible, and it's super loud. My recommendation is the new courtyard which is on 54th between broadway and 8th (almost the southwestern tip of Central Park). It's still close to midtown, super close to trans, the park and a lot of museums. It'll be somewhat quieter because it's not in the middle of Times Square either.

Also if you want to do Ellis Island/statue of liberty book it early! There's a place down on the seaport that sells broadway tickets same day, lines are always way shorter than the one in TS.

There's some great places in Financial district/seaport with waterviews and booze. Also the boat basin up on 72ish and west side highway is cool. So many amazing things, so jealous, I miss living there!!

Times Square is good to visit for a couple hours during the day, but I would not stay there. For starters, it's overly priced and extrememly congested. It is geared just for tourists and IMO is a complete rip off. You can get to the city with ease from any of the boroughs and Long Island. Times Square is just a tiny fragment of NYC .. which consists of 5 boroughs that offer just as many wonderful things. I am a Brooklyn girl, so my first suggestion is to visit and/or stay in Brooklyn. Long Island City is great as well for night life.

Someone mentioned already, but June is the annual Mermaid Parade in Coney Island, which is one of my favorite events. If you're brave enough to endure that 4 hour long line at Nathan's, get a hot dog too lol.

The lighthouse in Montauk is another favorite. The LIRR takes you there from Penn Station. It is a bit of a ride, but it's worth it.

My favorite restaurant is Bogota in Brooklyn. I could eat everything off that menu. You can do lunch there and then take a trip to the Brooklyn Museum after.

NYC still excites me and I have lived here my whole life. I am probably one of the few natives that take advantage of things it has to offer.

There's plenty of us on here .. so anything you need opinions on, just ask!!

NY'er here, born and raised. It is possible to get lost, but the city is a grid, you can find your way back around . Also, it's totally possible to stay in NY and even Times Square for less than &dollar;300. In fact, the Hotel @Times Square on 46th is &dollar;115 a night on almost every travel website (Expedia, Priceline, Hotels.com).

Times Square is full of tourists. That is a fact. There are plenty of other places to see in addition to Times Square. Get yourself a guide to the city, take the subway to the museums which are always fun, see Central Park (sometimes there are live shows here depending on when you go), head down to Greenwich Village and wander through the boutiques. If you have the time, go to Liberty Island for the Statue of Liberty, but book ahead, they book farther in advance then you think. Check out a show on Broadway, look for sales ahead of time. Go to the Intrepid, or take a sunset cruise.

There is always lots to do and see, you just have to do your research. I promise, you'll have a great time!

ETA: Just to add, there are plenty of other hotels too, some that overlook the Hudson, near the Javits Center, or some that look over the East River toward Queens/Brooklyn. They're all great spots!

I have stayed at The Roosevelt Hotel and if you are okay spending up to &dollar;300 a night, then I definitely recommend it. It is a beautiful old landmark hotel that is less than 2 blocks from Grand Central Station, but even though it is in the city, it is actually pretty quiet and I am a light sleeper and had no issues sleeping. It is also not too far from Broadway. Here is the link:

http://www.theroosevelthotel.com/#gref

I would say one of the things I am glad I did not miss when I went last year was the 9-11 Memorial and Museum. It was extremely sad, but I felt I got so much out of it.

China Town

Little Italy has some great old buildings, and I loved the food.

Brooklyn Bridge

Central Park (it's freaking HUGE)

Statue of Liberty -If you just want to see it and don't care if you get off and tour it, the Staten Island Ferry takes you past it for free.

Empire State Building

Strawberry Fields

The Metropolitan Museum of Art

Rockefeller Square

Saint Patrick's Cathedral is AMAZING, and is right across the street from Rockefeller Square

The Rockettes Summer Extravaganza is great and not too expensive!

Any Broadway Show, but the matinees are usually cheaper.

Also, once you get used to it, the subway system is great, and the weekly pass ends up saving you a ton of money.

When I went there me and my friend got tickets to these bus tours. They sell tickets all over the place and you can jump on and off whenever/wherever. We thought it was nice and an easy way to get around. We had fun but I don’t have any interest in going back lol.